Instrument beds for knitting machines



Feb. 17, 1959 5 2,873,595

A SHQRTLAND INSTRUMENT BEDS FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 27, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb. 17, 1959 A. SHORTLAND 2,

INSTRUMENT BEDS FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 27, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Feb. 17, 1959 I A. SHORTLAND 2,

INSTRUMENT BEDS FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Dec. 27. 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 /6- e /5 20 la /8 ON 2% 5 25\2\/\3 /f A. SHORTLAND Feb. 17, 1959 2,873,595

' INSTRUMENT BEDS FOR KNITTING MACHINES 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. 2-7, 1955 "nited States Patent INSTRUMENT BEDS FOR KNITTING MACHINES Arthur Shortland, Leicester, England Application December 27, 1955, Serial No. 555,660

Claims priority, application Great Britain January 3, 1955 9 Claims. ((21. 66-115) This invention relates to instrument beds of the kind which. are incorporated or adapted. for incorporation in knitting machines, and are provided with grooves or channels, customarily known as tricks, for the support and guidance of longitudinally movable knitting and like instruments.

Thus, the invention is applicable not only to needle and analogous dials and cylinders of circular knitting machines of various types, but also to beds in the form of plates or bars as embodied in flat and straight-bar knitting. machines.

The expression knitting and. like instruments used herein is intended to include not only looping elements which are actually in contact with loops during knitting,

such as needles, sinkers and transfer instruments or points, but also associated instruments such, for instance,

Moreover, it is extremely diificult to cut with a sufii cient degree of accuracy from Solidmetal, tricks having walls which are. so precisely spacedat all points. along their lengths as to avoid friction and vibration when knitting or like instruments are being reciprocated therebetween.

The primary object of, the present invention is to obviate thetforegoingdifiiculties by theprovision, for incorporation into, or applicationto, an; instrument bed for a knitting machine, of simply produced and comparatively inexpensivetricks of novel form having certain advantages as will be hereinafter described.

The invention also includes complete instrument beds furnished with or made up ofsuch tricks.

Broadly considered, a channel-shaped trick made in accordancewith the invention consists of andndividual element appropriately bent or folded to shape from an initially flat sheet-metal blank and comprising-two spaced sid? walls connected by an integral transverse. portion forming the bottom or back of the trick. p

The trick elem nt isinade from suitably hardened and tempered metal, and the Surfaces thereof are wholly smooth and clean.

If desired, the appropriate end of a trick element made in this way may be so fashioned as toconstitute an inte-, gral verge piece; or bit. for example, theiportions of thewallsyat the said end; may be spaced apart, to a gr ater xt nt than .thcgremt ining portions so that the,

trick element is sufiiciently wide at this location as to provide the required verge opening.

In one embodiment of the invention, a series of the individual trick elements are inserted and accommodated in a corresponding series of slots or grooves cut in an instrument bed.

It is, however, also within the scope of the invention to assemble and secure together a series of the individual trick elements suchwise as to provide a built-up instrument bed as will be hereinafter more fully described.

In any event, each individual bent or folded trick element can be easily fashioned, and adjusted if necessary, to fit an instrument of the kind and size concerned, thereby providing a smooth and clean and as near perfect a bearing as possible for the instrument. In this way friction and vibration is reduced to a minimum.

Where, as previously described, trick elements are inserted and accommodated in slots or grooves cut in an instrument bed, the elements may be fixed in the bed by means of one or more clamping components. For example, the or each such component may extend transversely with respect to the elements and be, received in a recessed portion of the bed, the component being provided witha formation or formations adapted to interlock with a complementary formation or formations in or/and on the spaced side walls of the trick elements. In the case of a dial, the clamping component may consist of either a one piece or a sectional annular plate or ring adapted to seat in a corresponding recess formed in the face of the dial. For acylinder, a sectional clamping ring would be employed, whereas .a one-piece clamping plate or bar would suiiice in the case of a needle bed for a flat or straight-bar knittingmachine.

In accordance with another feature of the invention, the said clamping component. or components may, if desired, be made adjustable backand forth or up and down in the direction of the length of the trick elements for the purpose of varying the effective diameter, width or length, as; the case may be, of the instrument bed. Thus, for instance, in the case of a dial equipped with longitudinally adjustable trick, elements, the effect diameter of the dial can be. increased by moving all of the elements radially outwards, and vice versa.

Alternatively, the trick elements of a series may be individually movable longitudinally in slots or grooves .in the instrument bed and be formedat their appropriate ends whether for contact by cams or for engagement. in a'.

cam track adapted to eflect projection or retraction of the elements seriatirn and relatively to. the instruments in the bed at any desired location or locations. In order that theinvention may be more clearly understood and readily carried into practical eifect, specific constructional examples thereof as applied to needle dials and cylinders of circular knitting machines will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings,

wherein,

Figure 1 illustrates, in its initially flat condition, a sheetmetal blank from which one of theindividual folded trick elements is fashioned, I

Figure 2 is a perspective view of one or the folded trick elements per sc,

Figure 3 is a, cross-sectional View through a slotted needle dial of a circular knitting machine of the'cylinder and dial type, showing one of. the folded trick elements clamped in position in one of the cut slots,

Figure 4- is a part-sectional perspective view of a frag mentary portion of such a dial with one of the folded,

Figureiis a perspective view somewhat similar to.

Figure 4 showing a modification in which the folded trick elements are individually movable longitudinally in the slots in the dial, and are engageable by cams adapted to effect. projectionandretraction ,ofthe, said elements seriatim, f a

Figure 6 is a plan viewof a portion of a needle dial showing folded trick elements which are individually. movable longitudinally and are formed for engagement in a cam track, as will be hereinafter described,

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view taken on'the line VII-VII of Figure 6,

Figure 8 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of the invention wherein individual trick elements are secured together suchwise as to provide a builtup needle dial,

Figure 9 is an exterior elevational view of so much of a built-up needle cylinder as is necessary to illustrate the manner in which individual folded trick elements are secured together upon a plain, i. e. un-slotted, cylinder, and

Figure is a vertical sectional view taken on the line IX'IX of Figure 9.

Like parts are designated by similar reference characters throughout the drawings.

p In the example illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, a ringshaped dial of relatively soft metal and a portion of which is indicated at 1 has cut therein a circular series of radially extending parallel-sided slots such as 2 each of a width greater than the thickness of the dial needle to be located therein. In the top of the inner portion of the dial 1 is formed a comparatively wide annular recess 3 the bottom 3a of which is in the same horizontal plane as the bottoms 2a of the slots. The rear wall 311 of the recess, i. e. that of smaller diameter, is vertically disposed whilst the front wall 30! thereof slopes forwardly. Nearer to its outer periphery, the dial 1 has formed in its top face a further but somewhat shallower and less, wide annular recess 4. Here again, the rear wall 4a of this second recess is vertically disposed and the front wall 4b forwardly inclined. The portions 1a of the dial adjoining the wall 4b and alternating with the slots 2 are appropriately machined and undercut (adjacent to the periphery of the dial) suchwise as to provide outwardly directed nib-like formations 1b having flat undersides spaced above the horizontal plane containing the bottoms 2a of the slots.

Into each .of the cut slots 2 is inserted an individual folded trick element 5 which lines the slot and provides a smooth and'clean channel dimensioned to provide a good bearing for a dial needle such as that indicated at DN in Figure 7. Each trick element 5, suitably hardened and tempered, is bent or folded to shape from an initially fiat single piece sheet-metal blank like that illustrated at B in Figure 1, and comprises two spaced parallel side walls 5a connected by and disposed at right angles to an integral bottom 5b (see Figure 2). At and adjacent to their tail ends, the spaced side walls 5a of each such element 5 are so recessed and shaped as to provide a pair of upstanding square-shaped'butts or tails 6 and adjoining recesses 7 having forwardly sloping front edges 70:. The spaced butts or tails 7 are of less height than the. corresponding walls 5a. Nearer to its outer end, the walls 5a of eachtrick element 5 have formed therein rectangular recesses 8. The leading end portions 5a of the walls of each element are of slightly less height than, and are laterally offset with respect to, the major portions thereof so as to open out and increase the width of the element at this end and so provide an integral verge bit VB. The frontal edges of these verge bits are slightly' undercut and slope rearwardly. I

Thus, as will be apperciated, all that is necessary to convert the initially flat sheet-metal blank B into a finelements 5 are in the nature of supplementary inserts serving to line the slots or grooves 2 cut in the dial. The dial itself can accordingly be of a comparatively soft material which does not require to be hardened. Consequently, no difliculties can arise from oxidation due to hardening.

Into the wider annular recess 3 in the dial 1 is fitted a clamping ring 11 the under face of which is shaped'to provide thereon and therein an annular rib 11a engaging in the recesses 7 in the tail ends of the trick elements 5 and an adjoining annular recess 11b (see Figure 4) to receive the upstanding butts or tails 6 of the said elements respectively. Screws such as 12 (Figure 3) are employed to fasten the clamping ring 11 to thedial 1. To permit of adjustment of the clamping ring 11 (which is preferably sectional) the holes 13 in this ring through which the shanks of the screws 12 extend are elongated, If the ring is sectional then the adjustments maybe for the purpose of varying the effective diameter of the dial by moving all of the elements radially outwards or in;

wards. The leading ends of the channel-shaped elements are held down by virtue of the upper edges of the openedout integral verge bits VB being engaged'beneath the flat underside of the aforementioned nib-like formations 1b on the dial 1.

As previously mentioned herein, the trick elements of this invention may be individually movable longitudinally in a slotted bed and arranged to be projected and retracted seriatim by cam means. A single trick element or two or more of suchelements at a time may be in the projected or retracted position at an appropriate location or at each of two or more desired locations. For exa ample, in the case of a needle bed, trick elements with integral verge portions may be projected seriatim at the or each knockingover point, the cam or cams whereby the projection is effected being adjustable suchwise as to vary the extent of such projection in order tocompensate for. different qualities and counts of yarn. This will be clearer from a consideration of the arrangement illustrated in Figure 5 which is a modification of the example described with reference to Figures 3 and 4.

Thus, in Figure 5 it will be seen that the rear wall 3b of the wider recess 3 in the diall is removed, and the clamping ring is dispensed with. Instead, a circular series of cams like those indicated at 14 and 15 are secured beneath the customary dial cam cap and engaged in the recesses 7 at the tail ends of the folded trick ele: ments 5. One of these cams, i. e. the cam 15, at the or each knitting location, is suitably contoured as shown and adapted to efiect firstprojection and then immediate retraction of' the elements 5 seriatim so that their integral verge bits VB extend beyond the periphery of the dial 1 at the knocking-over point. The remaining earns 14 of thesaid series, however, have parallel faces 14a and 14b concentric with respect to the centre of the dial so that at all points, with the exception of the knocking-over point or points, the trick elements 5 are maintained stationary in relation to the dial needles. The or each cam 15 for elfecting projection and retraction of the trick elements may, as shown, he made adjustable radially.

' For the sake of clarity in FigureS, the cams 14 and15 are shown in exploded relation with respect to the dial; in practice, these cams are located in the recesses 7.

Instead of cams being engaged in the recesses7 for vertical back edges of the butts or tails 6 and, on the other hand, by the inner face ofa depending annular rib 1611 which is formed on a ring 16 and extends down into the recesses 7-formed in the side walls 5a of the-' elements 5. The "said inner/face or the'depending rib.

16:: engages the front edges of the butts or tails 6. In the region of the cam 15' which projects forwardly somewhat from the faces of the cams 14 at a knitting location, the inner face of the depending annular rib 16ais correspondingly recessed as indicated at R in Figure 6. Thus, at the knitting location, the butts or tails 6 are acted upon by the bow in the cam track T as a consequence of which the elements 5 are first projected and then retracted seriatim. in this way, the verge bits VB integral with the said elements are caused to project beyond the periphery of the dial 1 at the knocking-over point. The ring 16 is clamped down solidly upon the top flat surfaces of the fixed cams 14 by means of screws 17 (Figure 6). But a small clearance is provided between the underside of this ring and the top face of the (or each) cam 15' to enable the latter to be moved outwards and inwards radially at desired times for the purpose of either disposing it in its operative position orwithdrawing it to an inoperative position as required.

Incidentally, although .the ring 16 serves to hold down the trick elements 5 in slots 2 cut in the dial 1", the arrangement is such that these elements can slide freely back and forth radially beneath the ring. For operating the cam 15 oreach such cam, as the case may be, there is provided an angularly shiftable operating ring 118 which is mounted upon the top of the ring 16 and has formed therein a cranked cam slot 19 into which extends the upper end of a pin 20 set, e. g. by screwing, in the cam 15. Thus, referring to Figure 6, it will be seen that as the operating ring 18 is turned to a small extent anti-clockwise, the crank in the cam slot 19 will, by action on the pin 2%), retract the cam 15' from its operative, i. e. forward, position shown, and vice versa. The pin 20 extends up through an aperture lab formed in the ring 16 and, to permit of the necessary radial movements of the cam 15','this aperture is elongated as shown more clearly in Figure 6. i

.In Figure 7, the dial cam plate or cap is indicated in chain lines at 21 and the numeral 22 indicates the hub of this component. The dial needles DN are furnished in the conventional way with operating butts 23 to be acted upon by dial cams one of which is diagrammatically represented at 24.

It has been stated earlier that a series of the individual trick elements 5 may, instead of being inserted in slots cut in an instrument bed, be assembled and secured together in such a way as to provide a built-up instrument bed. In this regard a flat and plain (i. e. un-slotted) ring or plate or a plain cylinder, according to the form of the bed being constructed, may be provided as a carrier and support for the assembled elements. .The elements maybe secured together by means of soft solder or the equivalent, this material being run in between the elements. The advantage of such a built-up construction is that the elements are readily detachable and easily replaceable, as occasion may demand. Another advantage is that the comparatively costly process of cutting slots in the bed is eliminated.

An example of a built-up needle dial is illustrated in Figure 8, wherein a fiat and plain, i. e. Lin-slotted annular plate or ring 25 is provided as a carrier and support for trick elements 5 which are assembled upon the flat top of the said plate or ring and are secured together by soft solder run into the spaces 26 between the elements. For additional security, a clamping ring ill may be provided in this, as also in the first described, example. A builtup needle cylinder is shown in Figures 9 and 10, wherein a ring of vertically disposed trick elements 5 of the form already described are secured upon and around the outer surface of a plain cylinder 27. Here again, the elements 5 are secured by soft solder introduced into the spaces 26 between them. For greater security, a sectional clamping ring 28 formed to receive the butts or tails 6 on, and to engage in the recesses 7 in, the elements 5 is attached to the lower end of the plain cylinder 2'] by means of screws 29. A cylinder needle is indicated: at 30 in Figure 10.

I claim:

1. For a knitting machine, an instrument bed which has formed thereina series of grooves in each of which is inserted an individual channel-shaped trick element for the support and guidance of a longitudinally movable knittinginstrument, said element being bent to shape from an initially flat sheet-metal blank and comprising two spaced side walls connected by an integral transverse portion forming the back of the trick and cooperating means on said elements and said grooves for holding down said elements.

2. For a knitting machine, in combination, an instrument bed having formed therein a series of grooves and a recess. extending transversely with respect to said grooves, individual channel-shaped trick elements which are inserted in the grooves and are adapted for the support and guidance of longitudinally movable knitting instruments, each of said elements being bent to shape from an initially flat sheet-metal blank and comprising two spaced side walls connected by an integral transverse portion forming the back of the trick, cooperating means on said elements and said grooves for holding down said elements, and at least one clamping component which is accommodated in the recess and has provided thereon and therein formations interlocked with complementary formations in and on the spaced side walls of. the trick. elements.

3. A combination according to claim 2, wherein the clamping component is adjustable in the direction of the length of the trick elements for the purpose of varying the effective size of the instrument bed.

4. In a knittingmachine, in combination, an instrument bed having formed therein a series of grooves, individual channel-shaped trick elements which are inserted in the grooves and adapted for the support and guidance of longitudinally movable knitting instruments, each of said elements being bent to shape from an initially fiat sheetmetal blank and comprising two spaced side walls connected by an integral transverse portion forming the back of the trick, cooperating means on said elements and said grooves for holding down said elements, said trick elements being themselves individually movable longitudinally in the grooves, and cam means engaging the tail ends of the trick elements suchwise as to effect projection and retraction of the latter seriatim respectively from and into the instrument, bed at a desired location.

5. In a knitting machine, in combination, an instrument bed having formed therein a series of grooves, individual channel-shaped trick elements which are inserted in the grooves and adapted for the support and guidance of longitudinally movable knitting instruments, each of said elements being bent to shape from an in itially flat sheet-metal blank and comprising two spaced side walls connected by an integral transverse portion forming the back of the trick, portions of the side walls of each element at the appropriate end thereof being spaced apart to a greater extent than the remaining portions .50 that the element is sufficiently wide at this end to provide an integral verge piece having therein a verge opening, means on said grooves cooperating with said verge pieces to hold said elements down, and the trick elements being themselves individually movable longitudinally in the grooves, and cam means engaging the opposite, tail ends of the trick elements suchwise as to efiect projection and retraction of the verge pieces seriatim respectively from and into the instrument bed at a knocking-over point.

'6. A combination according to claim 5, wherein said cam means are adjustable to vary the extent of projection of the verge pieces, for the purpose specified.

7. For a knitting machine, in combination, a needle dial which has formed therein a circular series of r 7 t radiating grooves, the top of the inner portion of said. dial having formed therein an annular recess, individual channel-shaped trick elements which are inserted in the grooves and are adapted for the support and guidance of longitudinally movable dial needles, each of said elements being bent to shape from an initially flat sheetmetal blank and comprising two spaced side walls connected by an integral transverse portion forming the back of the trick, the tail ends of the said side walls of each trickelement being so recessed and shaped as to provide respectivelyrthereon and therein a pair of butts and adjoining recesses, whilst near to the opposite end of the element the said walls have formed therein further recesses at locations adjoining which the leading end portions of the walls of each element are laterally offset with respect to the major portions thereof so as to open out and increase the Width of the element at this end and so provide thereon an integral verge bit, nib means on said grooves cooperating with said verge bits to hold said elements down, a clamping ring which is located in the aforementioned annular recess in the grooved dial, the under face of said clamping ring being so shaped as to provide respectively thereon and therein an annular rib engaging in the recesses in the tail ends of the trick elements and an adjoining annular recess to receive the butts on the elements, and means securing the clamping ring to the dial.

8. In a circular knitting machine, in combination, a needledial which has formed therein a circular series of radiating grooves, the top of the inner portion of said dial being annularly rebated, individual channelshaped trick elements which are inserted and slidable longitudinally in the grooves and are adapted for the support and guidance of longitudinally movable dialneedles, each of said elements being bent to shape from an initially flat sheet-metal blank and comprising two spaced side walls connected by an integral transverse portion forming the back of the trick, the tail ends of the said side walls of each trick element being so 7 a recessed and shaped as to provide respectively thereon and therein a pair of butts and adjoining recesses, whilst nearpto the opposite end of the element, the said walls have formed thereinifurther recesses at locations adjoining which the leading end portions ofthe walls of each element are laterally offset with respect to the major portions thereof so as to open out and increase the width of the element at this end and so provide thereon an integral verge bit, nib means on said grooves cooperating with said verge bits to hold said elements down, a dial cam cap disposed above the dial, and a circular series of cams which are secured to said cap and engaged in the recesses in the tail ends of the trick elements, said cams effecting projection and retraction of the verge bits seriatim respectively from and into the dial at a knocking-over point.

9. For a knitting machine, an instrument bed which has formed therein a series of grooves in each of which is inserted an individual channel-shaped trick element for the support and guidance of a longitudinally movable knitting instrument, said element being bent to shape from an initially fiat sheet-metal blank and comprising two spaced side Walls connected by an integral transverse portion forming the back of the trick, nib means on said grooves, said element being further shaped to cooperate with said nib means for holding down said elements, and means attached to said instrument bed to effect individual longitudinal movement of said elements in said grooves.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,108,772 Lawson et al. Feb. 15, 1938 2,508,834 Miller May 23, 1950 2,748,581 Luchsinger June 5, 1956 V FOREIGN PATENTS 436,127 Great Britain Oct. 4, 1935 872,445 France Feb. 9, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 2,873,595 February 17, 1959 Arthur Shortlend It 'is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

In the grant, lines 1,. 2 and 3, for "Arthur Shortland, of Leicester, England, read Arthur Shortland, of Leicester, England, assignor to Mellor Bromley & Co. Limited, of Leicester, England, a British company, line 12, for Arthur Shortland, his heirs" read Mellor Bromley & C0,. Limited, its successors in the-heading to the printed specification, line 3, for Arthur Shortland, Leicester, England" read m Arthur Short'iand, Leicester, England, assignor to Mellor Bromley & 00., Limited, Leicester, England, a British company Signed and sealed this 30th day of June 1959,

(SEAL) Attest:

KARL H, AXLINE ROBE T Attesting Officer R C WATSON Commissioner of Patents 

